When a phone call from out of the blue brings Leo (Joey Millin) back into contact with his sister, Virginia (Madison West), long estranged from her family due to years of drug abuse, he arrives to find her alone in a bare apartment in the midst of an apparent overdose. After the convulsions and nausea subside, Virginia insists to Leo that she has been clean for 8 months due to the help of a mysterious group. She confides to her cynical brother that her edginess and paranoia actually stem from a sinister ritual conducted by the group that took her in at her lowest and eventually revealed themselves to be a cult. This curse bound her emotions and physical sensations to a man she has never met before. 

With his marriage on the rocks, Leo has his own demons to face. Nonetheless, he is reluctantly persuaded by Virginia to embark on a cross-country road trip to track down this shadowy stranger under the caveat that if he’s nowhere to be found and it’s all in her head, she’ll go to rehab. However, as their date with destiny draws nearer, Leo begins to suspect his sister’s tall tale might have some substance. 

Threshold, the second feature from co-directors Powell Robinson and Patrick R Young, following their debut Bastard (2015), was improvised and shot on two iPhones over the course of a 12-day road trip with a crew of just three. The result is an inventive and compelling psychological thriller with hints of the supernatural that recalls such indie cult classics as Ben Wheatley’s Kill List (2011) and Justin Benson And Aaron Moorhead’s Resolution (2013). 

Threshold was filmed during a 12 day road trip, using 2 iPhones, and only a road crew of 3 people and you really cant tell. If you let someone know you were planning on putting together a film this way with just 2 phones I suspect eyebrows would be raised and low expectations would be brought into play, but the crew of Threshold have done a fantastic job and the film not only looks great, but it sounds great (and with a great score by Nick Chuba) , its wonderfully edited ( by William Ford-Conway) and captures great dramatic performances featuring a wide range of locations.

Everything you want from a film. Whilst there more than just the two main characters in the film, the film does certainly belong to Joey Millin and Madison West as the two close but also distanced siblings. Even scenes that involve no tension, or horror elements, are still engaging to watch as they share memories, laughs, and talks of Zamboni’s A thoroughly engaging and genuine story can be found here and on I loved spending time with these characters

We are most certainly rewarded if horror is what we seek, this film is tense when it needs to be, creepy as hell when it needs to be, but also balances those scenes and atmosphere with very tender moments which helps us care about the characters more than we would if this was just a run of the mill horror flick. I very much recommend checking out Threshold when you can

Directed by Powell Robinson, Patrick R. Young and written by Patrick R. Young I watched  Threshold at this years Eater Horror Nights, brought to you by Grimmfest.  The film has come out in a wonderful Arrow blu ray set and check out this list of special features!

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS 

• High Definition (1080p) Blu-rayTM presentation 

• Original 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio 

• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing 

• Brand new audio commentary with directors Powell Robinson & Patrick R. Young, producer Lauren Bates and lead actors Joey Millin and Madison West 

• Brand new audio commentary with directors Powell Robinson & Patrick R Young, and editor William Ford-Conway 

• Crossing the Threshold, a feature-length documentary on the making of Threshold 

• Elevating iPhone Footage: Color Correction Breakdown 

• Something from Nothing: Indie Genre Director Roundtable moderated by Scott Weinberg with directors Powell Robinson & Patrick R Young (Threshold), Brandon Espy (We Follow You), James Byrkit (Coherence), Zach Donohue (The Den) and Elle Callahan (Witch Hunt) 

• The Power of Indie Horror – Acting for Unconventional Film roundtable discussion moderated by Zena Dixon with the actors Madison West and Joey Millin (Threshold), Kelsey Griswold (Followed), Gabrielle Walsh (Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones) and Ryan Shoos (The Gallows) 

• The Sounds of Threshold original soundtrack 

• Threshold original outline script 

• Trailer and original teaser 

• Image gallery 

• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Coffee and Cigarettes 

FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Anton Bitel

Check out the special clip from the film